


Cat or Clown

by MrSpectacular



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-06-15 06:55:43
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,896
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15407469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrSpectacular/pseuds/MrSpectacular
Summary: Batman comes to realize that two very important people have been missing... and it's not a coincidence.Batjokes. BatCat.





	1. Smiling Cat

There was a figure; turned to nothing but a silhouette with the big and bright, full white moon behind it. Was it human? No, it couldn't be human. It was some sort of monster standing upon that building; some sort of beast. It had long and pointed ears standing up straight upon its' head. It was massive; it was more than six feet tall and very wide and muscular. Suddenly, it turned, and you could see... that it had wings. This was a winged beast! And as it moved its arm... you could see that there were 3 long and sharp spikes along it. What was this thing? It wasn't a bird, that was certain. It must have been some sort of mutant... an alien, maybe? A very terrifying one; it didn't look at all friendly. It looked menacing. It looked deadly.

  
It turned its' head to the side and revealed a long and pointed nose...

  
And then it turned around completely...

  
And all you could see were two narrow. Angry. Glowing. White. Eyes.

The eyes of the devil; the eyes of a demon.

  
Then it jumped off the building, and it didn't fall, no... it used those wings and began to fly; right over to a Gargoyle which it perched upon. Was it a gargoyle, itself?

  
"Alfred," spoke the beast in a deep, low voice. The voice... it came from lips. The lips of a man. He had skin. Regular, human skin. And closer, you could see that his eyes were not so frightening... he looked angry, yes, but the eyes didn't belong to a monster. They were an electric blue color and surrounded by long lashes. This was a human being; a man.

  
A man in a suit, not out to _harm_ the innocent... but out to _save_ the innocent.

  
A man in a bat suit, out to serve justice. To strike fear in the criminals.

  
This was BATMAN... out to protect Gotham City.

  
"Alfred," repeated the man dressed as a bat. "It's Joker," he continued, using an internal communication device on the left side of his cowl.

  
Joker... and that's exactly what he was. He was a jokester; a jester... He was a real card. He was just as tall as the Batman but much leaner. And instead of having bat ears rising from his head, he usually had sporadic hair rising up in long, green spikes. There were some who questioned whether or not he were human; some having referred to him as being the Devil himself, or some evil clown monster. He didn't have wings like the bat did, but he did often wear a long, dark purple trench coat which when blowing in the wind, would resemble wings. He always had on a pair of gloves, usually white. The last time Batman saw him, he'd been wearing a green vest beneath his coat with symbols on it; hearts, diamonds, spades and clovers. He'd worn regular black pants with a belt; a belt on which the belt buckle held a jester's head-shape. Seemingly average... Up until he turned and looked you dead in the eye and began laughing loudly and maniacally. His face was a chalky white color, the same color white as his gloves. He was beyond pale... And his eyes... his eyes were horrifying; they were big and wide, too wide, and surrounded by black paint. The color of his eyes were an unnatural green, too bright to be considered normal... and those pupils, they were tiny. Too tiny. Small, black dots in the middle of his irises. Those blood-shot eyes, just under extremely arched eyebrows, screamed insanity.

  
Not to mention his smile. His smile was unnaturally wide, revealing all 32 of his teeth each and every time he laughed or grinned. Such big, pearly white, obnoxious teeth coming out from his visible gums both on the top and bottom. That smile spread so wide, and looked to be even wider, as the Joker had painted, in red, a smile... going from ear to ear across his lips and cheeks.

  
Aside from that, his proportions were dramatic; his nose was long and pointed, similar to the Batman's, and his chin jutted out awkwardly. He looked as if he came out of a horror show, or a comic book. But no... to Batman's dismay, he was all too real. He was Batman's worst enemy; his arch nemesis. This clown, this Joker... had killed hundreds.

  
Batman could hear the Joker speaking now, right in his ear. Using that nickname he'd given Batman, a long time ago. _"Baaatssss..."_

  
"So you've found him," responded Alfred, the older man on the other line. He was the Bat's butler, and friend. He was even much like a father to the Batman. Or, as Alfred referred to him... Bruce. Alfred had practically raised him... because long ago, Batman's, Bruce's, parents were murdered; gunned down in an alley after the family went and saw a movie. The young man had seen the whole thing... and was scared stiff to the point that all he could do was stand there, and watch. A loud bang, and down fell his father, blood splattering across Bruce's young face. Then his mother... He remembered her pearls falling to the ground with her, surrounded in a pool of blood. Bruce couldn't ever forget... the way the blood spilled. The way they screamed. The pearls... his mother's lifeless hands. The gun shots. His father's guttural breathing. The cold and dark look in the criminal's eyes. And then silence... shock, and silence... It changed him, forever. Alfred had helped him a lot that night, and many nights after... Bruce wasn't sure who he would be if it hadn't been for Alfred. Without Alfred, he might not have vowed that he would protect Gotham; protect little boys and girls much like himself. Protect families. Protect anyone who needed protecting. Without Alfred, he may have gone a different way; he might have become the very man who killed his parents if he hadn't had his loyal butler to guide and help him with their passing. To help keep him sane.

"I'm afraid to ask what it is he's done, this time," continued Alfred. There was both irritation and some fear in his voice; and he had every right to be fearful. Joker was no average criminal; he was different. Usually criminals were relatively easy to figure out; most of them had the same goal or same agenda or same mental disorder. Most killed for money or power. This woman was killed because she'd cheated on her husband, or this doctor was killed because he stopped prescribing this woman her pain medication.

  
When Batman first met Joker, the clown didn't kill for money. He didn't kill for revenge. He didn't kill for power, no. He just killed for fun. He just did whatever was on the top of his head, he didn't give it a second thought. He was bored and people would often irritate him, or get in his way, or were just simply not funny enough... His reasons for killing were... nonexistent.

  
At least they were, at first...

  
There was a time, long ago, that Joker didn't care for Batman. He considered him nothing more than a minor nuisance and wanted to kill him as he wanted to kill anyone else. But one night, the night they first truly met, face to face... everything had changed for Joker. There had been an explosion which sent the Joker flying off the roof of a building and had him falling to his death. But Batman... SAVED him, much to Joker's disbelief. After all the people Joker had hurt, all the people he'd killed... he felt he deserved death. He felt that Batman should have felt the same way -- especially considering he'd only had plans to kill the Batman, himself! But no... Batman saved him. It changed everything.

Long ago, Joker had lost all hope in humanity. He considered human beings to be nothing but cruel and flawed and foul little creatures. Disgusting and ugly. He was severely misanthropic. But Batman. Batman was different. He considered their meeting to be fate; that their relationship, and everything that they had, was meant to be. Written in the stars. He came to see himself in Batman, and finally he felt that he wasn't alone. He saw Batman as the only other living being in the universe that he could relate to. "You're a FREAK, Bats! Heeheehaha! Just like ME!" he had said during one of their many brutal fights.

  
Joker, to put it simply, had fallen madly in love with the Batman... in the only way a man so insane and psychopathic could.  
His reason for killing then became... for Batman. Oh, how he craved the Batman's attention, and he knew exactly how to get it. He would kill anyone to get the attention of the bat. Not just anyone... EVERYONE. An elderly woman, a diseased man, even a child if he had to. No, he'd blow away an entire hospital and kill them all at once; with the biggest and most destructive bomb placed right in the newborn nursery. Anything to see that beautiful creature, that powerful monster. And despite Batman's obvious heroism, Joker saw deep down, that Batman had an anger in him, and was capable of doing really terrible things. He knew that if he pushed Batman hard enough, that he could truly become on the inside what he was on the outside; a demon and a terror to all.

Joker loved the idea of breaking him, yet also loved that Batman always stood against him and challenged him. He had many contradicting thoughts toward the vigilante. But to put it simply; he was tremendously fixated. He would do anything to tease that bat, to torture and be tortured by him. He saw it as a game, as fun. He saw it as him helping the Batman to become the very best Batman he could be. And he felt that Batman helped him to be the very best Joker.

  
And there were times, even, that Joker would kill Batman's friends... his lovers... for attention, always, but also to prove a point. Sometimes to prove that Batman didn't truly love them and that he wasn't so soft and pathetic. To demand Batman not to change. Other times it was to make clear that Batman was his, and his alone. That what they had, could neither be replaced, nor interfered with.

  
Batman had tried to stop Joker so many times but it never helped. No matter how many times he threw him in the asylum, the Arkham Asylum, hoping he could somehow be rehabilitated... he only ever escaped and continued with what he was doing, as if he'd never been put in. Even when he gave Joker the worst beatings he'd ever given, and stopped only just before killing him... Joker would only end up ecstatic as he gasped for breath-- ECSTATIC. Overjoyed and merely thrilled.

  
Batman remembered the many times that he was letting loose on Joker, pounding his face in, and the Prince of Crime only laughed and allowed it. Batman could see Joker's heart rate through the heart monitor in his cowl, feel his heart beating faster and faster as excitement engulfed him; the thrill of being beaten by him, causing his penis to harden beneath his purple slacks. Batman quickly came to realize that Joker was a masochist in every sense of the word... He WANTED to get hurt. He WANTED to die. He wanted nothing more than to tease Batman, play with Batman, and eventually be beaten or KILLED by Batman... only Batman. Which made dealing with Joker all the more difficult. How do you stop someone who responds positively to fear, to threats and pain? To death? Nothing the Batman could do would deter him. In fact, everything he ever did only encouraged Joker to seek out more from him. It was a vicious cycle... A violent game... A monstrous dance.

 

  
Batman hesitated before he spoke.

  
"He took her. He has her. Catwoman..." he said. He looked around him; there were cats. He counted them; 5 cats by the lamp post, 3 cats in the alley way to his right, and more on the roof which he currently crouched under as he rested on top of the gargoyle. They were meowing. Calling. Searching. One of the cats meowed erratically, it sounded almost as if it were puking... but no. It was smiling. It was LAUGHING. Joker had a toxin which he used, that when he sprayed on living beings, would turn them into... well, him. Their smiles would grow significantly large, their eyes would widen. They'd laugh uncontrollably and die soon after. 

Joker had used that toxin on this cat; it was a sign left for Batman. 

"They were both here," said the caped crusader. 

  
Catwoman... she was a beautiful young woman. Feisty, like a cat, just as her name describes. She and Batman had a lot in common. Both wore suits, wore masks, and were orphans. Only instead of disguising as a bat-creature, she disguised as a cat. She had a whip and razor sharp claws that she used in defense. And instead of protecting the innocent, protecting Gotham, she instead thieved from it. Her reasons for dressing up at night were selfish and something Batman didn't agree with. But because of their similar upbringing and their mutual comprehension of leading two lives, Batman had become attached to Catwoman and vice versa. Batman... known as Bruce Wayne, without the cape. Catwoman... known as Selina Kyle, without the whip. They had a sort of understanding of one another and when together, were often very flirtatious. There were times that Batman had to fight her and during their battles, she'd stroke him in certain places and often get away because of it. There had been kisses, and oral, and even further... sex. There had even been some proclamations of love coming from both parties, but it was often retracted or forgotten as both were uneasy about having a committed relationship... or any relationship, in general. But even so, Catwoman was important... very important, to Batman. Selina, was important to Bruce.

 

"Oh my..." Alfred began, despondently. He knew how much Catwoman meant to Batman and the fact that she was in the hands of Joker of all people, was never a good sign. Especially after what he did to Jason Todd, Bruce's adopted son. He'd nearly beaten him to death with a crowbar and then finished the job with an explosion. Batman remember holding the dead, blood-soaked young man in his arms. He also remembered Barbara Gordon... She used to work for him, as Batgirl, until Joker broke into her house and shot her in the gut. Paralyzing her from the waist down and leaving her to live out the rest of her life in a wheelchair. "Master Bruce, that is... unfortunate." Alfred tried to put it lightly. "Do you have any idea where he's taken her?" asked the butler.

  
"No," Batman said as he jumped off the gargoyle and glided to the nearest alley. "But I am going to find out..." said the bat once he landed. He kept it short. He didn't want to burden Alfred with the extreme amount of rage he was feeling in that moment. He wanted to tear Joker apart, limb from limb. He imagined himself and Joker, in an alley way. He imagined Joker laughing hysterically as he punched and beat the maniac mercilessly. He imagined the blood, all over his knuckles, all over Joker's bony face. He imagined breaking those teeth, he imagined strangling the clown who tried to laugh but couldn't. He imagined that laughter finally stopping, he imagined the life leaving the Joker's eyes. He imagined how satisfying it would feel, to finally let go.

  
But he wouldn't do it. No... he couldn't. If he were to kill the Joker, he would become nothing other than the Joker. If he were to lose the Joker, he would lose himself. Not only that, but he knew fully well that Joker was indeed a human being; a man suffering from severe mental illness. It wasn't his fault that he was the way he was.

No. He couldn't kill Joker. No matter how much he, and Joker, wanted it. Not even if the Joker pushed each and every one of his buttons.

  
_A month..._ thought Batman. He followed the trail of cats until there were no more; the trail stopped. He used his heat vision to track down the nearest cat. He thought he saw one, but it turned out to be a large rat. He needed to get higher, so he could look further. He used his grapple to get up to a higher building and then he looked out. He saw a cat here, a cat there. He traveled to each, and though neither were smiling, he searched the area surrounding. There was no sign of anything suspicious.

  
_I should have seen it sooner. I should have figured it out. He escaped from Arkham a month ago. I've not seen her for nearly as long._

  
_She is a runner. It is often that she disappears. It is part of what makes her who she is. She is unattainable. But that doesn't give me any excuse. I should have looked harder for her. I should have looked harder for Joker. If I'd found him earlier, I could have prevented this. It's my fault he's taken her._

  
_Joker always seeks me out. He always tries to get my attention. Most often in the worst ways imaginable. He would kill for it. I should have seen the signs. The silence.The stillness. He's been too quiet._

 _I should know by now that as long as the Joker breathes, I will be chained to him. He will never stop..._ thought Batman. 

 

"Sir, I do hope you're not blaming yourself for any of this," Alfred suddenly said. Alfred seemed to know him well after all the years they've known each other. Batman was quiet. 

 

"There is no way you could have known that Joker was involved," the butler added. 

  
Batman knew Alfred was right. He shut his mind off, ignored all the little voices telling him that whatever happened to Selina was his fault, and focused on finding her.

  
Batman made his way to the Amusement Mile, Joker's Funland. It was the last place he'd seen Joker, before he took him to Arkham Asylum. There was no sign of the clown. It was his usual hide-away and Batman wondered if the psychopath had taken Selina out of the city.

  
_Whatever he has planned, he wants me to find him. He will have left me a sign. It would be here. The last place we were together._

  
Batman walked over to where he took the Joker down before cuffing him and throwing him in the Batmobile many months ago. He remembered the moment clearly. He remembered straddling Joker's hips, breathless as he punched him square in the face over and over again. How badly he had wanted to kill him, right then and there. He didn't want to stop pounding him, not until he laughed and came to choke and suffocate on his own tainted blood. It felt so good to hurt the clown, the anger in him needed to be released after what the clown had done. And there was such anger in him; not just because of Joker, but because of the cruelties of the world, the death of his parents. At times when Batman lost control over his anger and was beating Joker, his corrupted mind would tell him that it was okay because the sociopath wanted it. That the psychopath deserved everything Batman gave to him and then some.

Killing him would have been so relieving... the satisfaction, incomparable. But in the back of Batman's mind, he knew he couldn't do it. There was always that light in the corner of his mind, shining bright through the darkness, and telling him to stay in control. That killing was wrong. That things shouldn't be done this way. Always the reminder... that Joker was a human being, despite appearances, and that he had no right to take his life. Batman knew that killing Joker would make him no better than Joker; he'd be no better than the man who killed his parents. So he had stopped just before and turned Joker over onto his stomach to cuff him. He could hear now, what Joker had said... "Hahaha! Haah! Kaahh, ccrrkkk... Oh, BATS! So close, this time, so close...! Heehaha!"

  
Batman came out of his reverie. He saw the old blood splatter from their battle. He also saw a strange figure beside the blood; a sort of clown doll.

  
_I don't remember this being here... no... in fact, I'm positive it wasn't. Joker must have placed this here, deliberately. But why? Is this a bomb? Is there poison on it?_

  
Batman bent down very carefully and inspected it. There was nothing inside it but cotton. No poison... It was harmless; just a regular doll. The bat slowly picked it up. He turned it over and saw there was a tag on the rear... with writing on it. He looked closer.

  
"Harm's way," it said, in messy green capital letters. There was no doubt in Batman's mind now that it was indeed placed deliberately and that this was the sign Joker had given him. But what did it mean?

  
_Harm's way... this isn't just a threat. This means something. He's trying to tell me something... but what?_

  
He turned the tag over and there was another note, this one written in purple.

  
"Armageddon," Batman said.

  
"I beg your pardon, sir?" asked Alfred.

  
"Joker left a doll here. On the tag, there are notes... one side of the tag says Harm's Way. And the other says Armageddon," Batman explained.

  
"Oh dear. Do you think it means something?" Alfred asked.

  
"Yes. Perhaps a location. Check for a place named Harm's Way," Batman said.

  
"One moment," replied Alfred.

  
"Nothing, sir," Alfred said.

  
Batman was quiet as he thought.

  
_Harm's Way... Armageddon... both threatening but seemingly random. They were written for a reason... what is that reason? How are these notes similar? What is the connection?_

  
_Arm. Both of these messages have the word ARM in them..._

  
He turned the doll back over and looked at it. He looked at the arms. The arm on the left was pointing upward. And the arm on the right was pointing right.

_The arms... they aren't pointing in these directions randomly. Harm's Way... Arm's Way. He wants me to go the way the arms are pointing. Straight and then to the right._

  
Batman looked ahead; there was a dark path, through a sort of door, which acted as a mouth for a clown that was painted around it. He put the doll back on the floor and then stood up. He stepped forward, into the mouth, which turned on a light and caused some music to play. Batman looked around, cautiously.

  
"You're-a-gettin' there!" said a recording, over and over, in a high-pitched, goofy clown voice.

  
_Armageddon... you're-a-gettin'..._

  
Batman then took a right, and followed the winding path until it came to a dead end. There were giant, flashing arrows pointing to a box, purple and green, on the floor. Batman had seen many of them in his past with the Joker. It never meant well - they were usually filled with harmful chattering teeth, bombs, or body parts. Batman squinted his eyes and the sensors in the cowl turned his vision to Detective Mode, which granted him a sort of x-ray vision. But before he even took a step, the box exploded and he was thrown back a few feet. Batman was surprised and wondered how it was possible; usually the gift-boxes didn't go off until he was just few feet away. This time he was closer to ten feet away and hadn't even stepped forward since turning the corner. Batman realized that it must have been set on a timer - perhaps when he first stepped through the entrance, when the light turned on. It must have been timed according to how long it would take to walk down the hall and find the box. Batman began to worry as he realized that Joker was learning new tricks. Or was it that he always knew them but didn't find them funny enough to use at the time?

  
Smoke surrounded the bat, as well as chattering teeth that came over to him and sent him little electric shocks. Not enough to damage him badly; more like a tease. Batman grunted and then used his Batarang, which was a sort of bat-shaped shuriken, to cut one in half. He used the Bat-Claw, which was a modified grapple gun, to grab and fling another one to the wall. Then he stood up and stomped on another with his heavy, black boot. As the smoke cleared, suddenly the lit up, flashing arrow turned into a screen. Batman knew what was coming next.

  
"So you've finally figured it out, eh, Bats?!"

  
The screen showed Joker's face up close; that pale skin, those bright green eyes. His smile was wide and toothy. Batman clenched his fists and glared at the screen, all of his rage returning ten-fold.

  
It took all of Batman's will power not to shout out the Joker's name, angrily. He wondered if what he was seeing was live or a recording. He imagined if it was live, he'd find out soon. He held in his rage as best he could, and instead gritted his teeth. He knew that if Joker could indeed see him now, that any reaction, especially furious ones, would only thrill him. It would be like a sort of victory to the clown.

  
"Heehaha! It's about time too!" Joker added. "Ugh, why is the zoom--" he said under his breath while fiddling with the camera. He zoomed out until his entire upper body was clearly visible rather than just his eyes, nose and smile.

"There! And yes, this is live, hosted by yours truly!" Joker said, answering Batman's question. He hated when Joker seemed to know what was in his head. 

And now that he knew he would be heard, Batman asked the appropriate question.

"Where is she?" Batman asked as calmly as he could, though staring at Joker with hatred in his eyes.

"Who? Gordon's daughter? Or should I say, Batgirl? Heehee... She was on the carpet, bleeding profusely, last I checked," Joker said, playfully. Batman was shocked to find out that Joker was aware of the fact that Barbara was Batgirl; how did he find out? Was it why he attacked her in the first place? Or did he figured it out after Batgirl's disappearance once he'd paralyzed her? Batman thought to ask questions but he figured it was best not to; he didn't want to confirm it. And he had to stay focused on Selina for this moment. 

"No. Catwoman," Batman asked. His heart was starting to race faster and his breathing was picking up. He knew Joker would notice. These were the things that excited Joker; any sort of reaction that came from him.

"No Catwoman? So you don't want her around, is that it? I can take care of that for you!" Joker said, his smile widening.

"Joker!!!" Batman finally yelled the clown's name, so loudly that his voice reverberated off the walls. He was clenching his fists so hard that he felt and heard them crack. He stepped closer to the screen, scowling and glaring. 

"Yes, darling?" Joker asked, resting his hands under his chin, looking enamored. Batman knew Joker loved hearing his own name, especially coming from his lips.

"Tell me where she is!!! NOW!!!" Batman cried out. He wished he hadn't shown such strong emotion but it was nearly impossible not to under the current circumstances and Joker's consistent tantalizing. 

  
"There is no need to yell! Sheesh! Is that really the way to treat a guy that has a hostage? You know, sometimes I wonder if you really DO want me to kill these people!" Joker responded. He picked up the camera and turned it towards Catwoman. She was sitting, strapped to a chair... one eye was bruised and closed shut and there was blood running down the right side of her face. Batman's heart hammered.

  
_No!_ he shouted in his head. But he wouldn't say it out loud. It would only encourage Joker. He watched in silence as Catwoman looked up at Joker, glaring.

  
"You'll never get what you want, you creep," she said. Fighting despite her situation. Batman watched on, trying to remain expressionless while Joker walked over to her with the camera. He watched as Joker properly positioned the camera.

 

"Can ya see, Bats? I want you to see THIS!" he said. Batman didn't respond.

 

"Now that's enough outta you, missy!" Joker said before slapping Catwoman hard across the face. Laughter followed soon after. 

  
"What do you want?!" Batman yelled, angrily.

  
"It's all your fault, you know," Joker began, ignoring Batman's question. He turned the camera back to himself. "You'd think killing your bird would've gotten the message across. Apparently it wasn't enough. None of it was enough. All the necks I've snapped, all the brains I've splattered. I guess you just never really liked any of these people to begin with... Can't say I blame you. Heeha! But Catwoman..." Joker's voice became dark and Batman could hear his anger. "Oh... you like her..." he continued, glaring at Batman. There was obvious jealousy radiating from Joker. Batman's stomach turned. What did Joker know? What had Joker seen? Was he constantly watching him? Did he have cameras throughout the city?

"The question is..." Joker continued. "How much? Would you be willing to KILL for her? Would you be willing to stop playing our fun little game just to keep her around?" Joker questioned, his smile returning.

  
"Let her go. This doesn't concern her! This is between us!" Batman yelled, still trying to get Selina to safety, even if he knew that the odds of Joker releasing her were slim to none.

_But I have to try._

  
"Hahaha! Oh, Bats... you just don't get it, do you? Is that mask on too tight? Is it crushing your brain? Or maybe it's that you don't have a brain at all. Flutter, flutter, I can hear the bats flying around in there... Of course it's between us. Just. Us. You and me. Joker and Batman. That is why it very much DOES concern her... and the only way she's getting out of here, is either if she dies... or I do."

  
Batman hesitated as he processed what the Joker had said.

  
_He's going to make me choose... it's either her, or him. No... there has to be a way around this. No one's dying tonight. I will find a way._

  
Joker couldn't hold in his laughter. "Hahahahaha!! You should see your face! Haha! Priceless!!! Heehaha! Hoh!..." he cried, wiping a tear. " Now, come on, hurry hurry, Batsy-baby! There's no knowing how long she will last after what I'm gonna do to her, heehahaha!" he added, picking up a crowbar. One last poke before the screen went black.

  
Silence filled the room.

 _No!_ Batman thought, visions of Jason running through his mind. He imagined the same being done to Catwoman and he began to panic. _No, no!_

He shut his eyes and took a breath, and then another. He had to calm himself. 

 _No. He won't kill her. He won't kill her... he wants me to play the game. He's just toying with me..._ Batman thought. He opened his eyes and looked down. He saw that Catwoman's goggles were on the floor; they'd been in the box with the chattering teeth. Batman clenched his jaw and picked them up, looking at them. One of the goggles were cracked. Batman closed his fist tight around the goggles then turned to the right and punched through the wooden wall, yelling out angrily. 

"Arrhhh!!"

Remaining even-tempered was proving to be challenging. 

 


	2. Life or Death

Batman was livid. He threw Catwoman's goggles on the floor as he stormed out of the building. He clenched his teeth and fists tightly together. His heart pounded ferociously beneath the bat symbol on his chest. Oh, the anger he felt then and there, was immeasurable. He saw flashes of Joker, those eyes, that smile. He saw his own hands wrapping tightly around that scrawny neck, squeezing, squeezing. He saw flashes of Catwoman, the blood running down her face. How it reminded him of that one night his parents were taken from him. The blood against the smooth, pale skin of his mother.

  
_What did he use to strike her? Did he use his own fists? Did he use a crow bar? A gun? I'll beat that clown so senselessly that he won't remember who it is that's pounding the life out of him! I'll beat the masochism right out of the bastard!_ thought Batman.

  
"Sir..." spoke Alfred, having heard the Joker over the communication device in the bat's cowl.

  
"Not now, Alfred!" Batman angrily responded; he didn't want to speak to Alfred, he was far too angry. He knew that anything that Alfred said would only infuriate him further and he didn't want to take anything out on his long time friend. His anger, at that moment, was hard to control.

  
"I won't be silenced, Master Bruce. Not at a time like this. I know you don't want to hear it... but, well, I'm afraid you don't have any other choice," Alfred continued. Batman thought of shouting at Alfred, but he stopped himself.

_NO. You need to control yourself, Bruce. This is Alfred... Calm down. Breathe._

  
Batman took a deep breath in through his nose and shut his eyes.

  
"What?" he asked, his voice steadier now and less aggressive.

  
"Now I know that I don't usually say things like this... but perhaps... perhaps it is time that you considered... ending all of this. After all this time, after all the people he's killed... It would be a service, and not only to the people of Gotham... but to you," Alfred began.

  
"Alfred..." Batman said, quietly... disapproving, even though in that moment, he imagined killing the Joker with pleasure... but he knew that in reality, he had to avoid it at all costs.

  
_I can't kill him. I won't. Please... Don't push me Alfred... Don't you realize the consequences?_

"Sir, he won't stop," the old man continued, his voice beginning to shake. "He will only continue to harm the innocent, harm the one's you love... You cannot allow him to kill Ms. Kyle! If you are to be forced between choosing one or the other, I would certainly hope that you'd choose her life over his. He is a menace and will never be anything but! I don't want you to lose everyone who's ever cared about you, Bruce. Not for some... psychopath!"

  
Batman hesitated. A softness overcame him. He knew that in a way, Alfred was right.

  
"You're right, Alfred... he will never stop. Even if I'm able to save the both of them, tonight... He will only continue going after everyone I love. Killing him would ensure that he didn't. He's already taken so much from me. From Gotham. If I'd killed him long ago, Robin... Jason would still be alive. Barbara would still be Batgirl. So many men, women and children would still be alive. He's ruined families. He's ruined lives. He's ENDED lives. He's killed all of the hope that we work so hard to keep flowing through the hearts of those in this city..." Batman said.

  
"If I had killed him... he wouldn't have Selina, now. She'd be safe. If I'd killed him... so many people would still be alive today... If I let this continue, he will only kill more and more... especially those who matter most to me..."

  
"I'm afraid you're right, Master Bruce... And I hate to say it... but there have been numerous accounts when the maniac has had you within his grasp, where you were unconscious for hours, alone with him. Dare I say it... there could be a chance that he already knows who you are, sir. What if he were to kill ME? Would you be able to handle it? Could you forgive yourself if that ever were to happen?" Alfred asked, softly. Even with the thought of his own death, he didn't seem so concerned for himself as he was concerned for Bruce.

  
_I couldn't bare to lose you. Not you. I'm not sure I could keep fighting the demon with me, if you're not here to keep him at bay. If you were... killed..._ the bat thought.

  
"I don't think he wants to know who I am behind the mask... even if he had the chance..." Batman then said. "It would ruin his fun."

  
"Would you be willing to bet my life on it?" Alfred asked. Batman's heart skipped a beat. Alfred often had a way of making him feel that way... he gave it to him straight, no beating around the bush. No hinting at things. He just came right out and said what needed to be said, whether it was painful to hear or not.

  
_If I kill Joker... I'll become the very thing I fear becoming._

  
_But if I don't... and he hurts Alfred... kills Alfred... the result could be the same._

  
_What do I do? Do I break my one rule? Do I kill another man? For Alfred?_

  
_No... I promised I wouldn't. Not just for my parents... but for Gotham. If I'm to kill him... that beast in me, I won't be able to contain it. It will be set free and I will become... a monster. Where there was once hope, there would then be fear. The only one they felt they could count on... would then become the one to hurt them. It's better if Joker is the one to hurt them... not that I want it. I would never ask for it. But they are used to him being the villain... I'm the one they trust. I can't break that trust. I can't become the monster. I have to be the hero._

  
_No matter what happens... I have to keep the beast in me at bay for as long as I can... killing Joker tonight would bring him out immediately._

  
_It's all about buying time..._

  
"I can't kill him, Alfred," Batman said. Alfred was quiet and Batman felt pressure in his chest as he became overwhelmed with guilt. Was he making the right choice?

  
_I'm sorry, Alfred..._

  
"I won't let anything happen to you. Or Selina. No one is dying, not while I'm around. I'll find a way around it. I always do. WE always do," Batman added; even though deep down, he had fears and doubts. But he didn't let it show in his voice; he sounded sure. Confident.

  
"I... suppose you're right, sir," Alfred responded; he couldn't hide the doubt as well as Batman did.

  
There was a momentary silence... Alfred stood still in the Batcave while Batman stood still on the grounds of the Amusement Mile.

  
"Well... if you won't kill him," Alfred finally broke the silence and continued. "Then you at least have to stop him. You must go, and save her. I suggest you find out where he is, and quickly."

  
Batman went back and replayed Joker's video, seeing it through the eyes of his cowl.

  
"He's in some sort of... abandoned building. It looks to be an old steel mill," he told Alfred. "There's one not too far from here. I'll bet that's where he's taken her."

  
"Excellent..." Alfred said, sarcastically. "Do be careful, sir."

  
"Don't worry, Alfred. Joker doesn't want to kill me," Batman replied.

  
"A mystery in itself," Alfred responded.

  
Batman was quiet, thinking as he left the Amusement Mile and headed for the steel mill.

  
He remembered one of those times that Alfred was referring to, when Joker had caught him off guard and knocked him out. He'd woken up, chained to a table... still in his suit, as always. Joker never seemed to want to remove it, even when he had the chance. Batman was sure he'd never looked... Or at least, Batman hoped he hadn't. His fears of Joker getting to Alfred intensified as he went through this memory.

  
_"Ooh, no no no... You've got it all wrong, Bats. I don't want to kill you..."_ Batman remembered Joker saying, as he dragged the tip of a very sharp knife along his leg, against his suit. He remembered how Joker stared deeply into his eyes, unblinking. An unnaturally soft smile on his lips. And those pupils... they were dilated. Filled with love. Admiration. Lust...

  
_"Well... I DO..."_ Joker had continued, raising his brows comically and looking up at the ceiling momentarily before looking back down at the bat. He bent over Batman, one hand on the man's chest and the other, holding the knife, on his stomach. He looked Batman deep in the eyes, their faces only inches apart. Batman struggled to escape from the chains as he looked back, glaring.

  
_"I'd love nothing more than to watch you BLEED, hear you BREATHE your last breath, SMILE your last smile as you left this cruel world, put an end to this sick joke..."_ Joker had continued. He had leaned back and continued pacing, this time running his gloved hand along Batman as he walked over to his feet. He gently stroked a finger along his boots. He looked at Batman once more before looking away, thoughtful as he continued to speak.

  
_"But if I did kill you... What fun would I have then? I'd be alone. Who would I have? Harley? Booring! haha!"_ Joker had laughed, brows creasing for a moment. He continued pacing around the table, and stopped at Batman's head. He rested his hands beside each side of the bat's head, and looked down at him, upside down. He had a more playful smile on his face.

  
_"Now, if you were able to rise from the dead, and come back as some sort of bat zombie, that'd be one thing. Oh, if that were the case, I'd have killed you hundreds of times by now, haha!"_ he leaned back and walked off to the side, his back to Batman.

  
_"And trust me, I've had the chance. More than just this once. You know as well as I do... but no. I won't kill you..."_ he said. He turned back around, this time appearing to be more serious. He still smiled, but there was something different in him... his mood had changed.

  
_"I can't live without you..."_ he said, stepping closer, continuing to walk around the table while looking Batman dead in the eyes. _"You're my REASON. L'amour de ma vie..."_

_"This game... what we have... it's everything..."_

  
Batman could heart his heart throbbing as he remembered that night... partly in anger. Partly in fear. But there was something else, too... something... He shut his mind off, unwilling to analyze what it was he was feeling. He focused instead on his where-abouts... traveling through the city, heading for the steel mill. He was almost there.

_It's my own fault that he's taken her. Someone... maybe even him... must have seen us together. I should have warned her about him. How he is. I should have stopped it... So many times I allowed her to touch me. So many times I touched her back. I wanted it. She wanted it. I was weak... desperate. Selfish. I should have stopped it. I could have prevented this._

_What if I can't save them both? What if I do have to choose? What if she dies before I'm even able to?_

_What am I thinking? There is no choosing... if I can't save them both, then I will save her. Joker will have to die..._

Batman's stomach turned at the idea. One last grapple, one last glide and Batman stood on top of the steel mill...

It was time to go inside.


	3. The Steel Mill

Batman made his way into the steel mill through a hole in the roof. Once he landed firmly on the floor, an echo filled the room. It was dark... quiet. There wasn't a sound. No music, as there usually was. There were no lights, no clowns... Nothing to signal that the Joker was there. Batman felt that it was unlike Joker... He thought to leave, but no. He had to stay, and observe the entire building before he left. He had to be sure.

  
He opened a door, leading to a staircase... and there he suddenly spotted a man. His back was to Batman, but the Dark Knight could see that he was wearing a clown mask.

  
_This is the place, alright..._ thought Batman.

  
The man was watching the staircase, hardly blinking. He held an automatic rifle in his hands as he shifted his weight from his left foot to his right. How long had he been standing there, waiting? Looking in the wrong direction... Batman slowly crept over to him, and before the man was able to turn around, Batman grabbed him from behind, putting him in a choke hold and covering his mouth with his hand. Batman heard muffled screaming, not loud enough to disturb anyone else who might have been nearby.

  
The man slowly passed out. Batman let him down to the floor, gently.

  
Once he stood back up, he heard a beeping noise, coming from the man he'd just rendered unconscious. Thinking it was a bomb, Batman quickly ran down the stairs and took cover... but nothing happened. Instead, a voice filled the hallway, coming through the intercom.

  
"Ladies and gentlemen! The bat has arrived! Hoo hoo!" Joker laughed, his voice bouncing off the walls. Batman's frown grew even longer. Joker must have attached some sort of heart monitor to his men, which managed to not only signal Batman's arrival but would also help Joker to know how many men within the mill were still kicking. "I'm almost ready, bats! Think you can hold out a little longer? For little old me? Oh, this is going to be fun! Heehee!"

  
Joker sounded so thrilled, so excited. Like a child on Christmas morning. Batman was disgusted; his brows lowered angrily as he ran down the stairs, opening another door. He wanted to hurry, to get to Joker before he was finished preparing whatever it was he was preparing. Maybe if he got there early, he could save Catwoman without Joker even realizing. His hopes were unrealistic, but he had hope, none-the-less. He always had hope...

  
"Now, look, don't any of you kill him!" said Joker, turning his attention towards his henchmen. "If you do... oh, believe me.... you'll wish you'd never been born. I'll peel your faces off and send them to your precious little families. Oh what's that? You don't have a family? Then I'll just kill you. Slowly. And painfully. I'll tie you up and force you to listen to Harley, for hours on end! I know what you're thinking... how could I be so heartless?! So cruel?! That's low, even for me! And not only that! I'll remove one of your limbs, every hour, until you bleed out... Understood? Don't think I've gone soft...! You can hurt him a little bit... if you get the chance. But hey, let's face it... odds of that happening are slim to none! Haha! Isn't that right, Bats? Now... Let's see how badly you want me... Kick their asses! -- Oh, woops! ... Did I say that out loud? Heehaha!"

  
And with that, it become quiet.

  
_I don't want you, Joker... I'm doing this for her..._ thought the Dark Knight as he creeped up on another of Joker's men. He ripped the weapon from his hands and took him by the throat, holding him up high in the air.

  
"Where is Joker?" Batman asked, looking like the devil in the eyes of the man he choked.

  
"I ain't tellin' you nothin'! Boss ain't ready yet!" the man said. Batman sighed.

  
"Goodnight," he said, punching the man in the face so hard that he was immediately knocked out.

  
For a moment, Batman almost felt bad for Joker's henchmen... not only because he'd be knocking them out, himself... but because they, for some reason, felt that they had no other choice but to be a victim, a slave to Joker. He wondered and imagined their lives had to be quite terrible for any of them to deliberately follow Joker, even go so far as to play this game, and basically allow Batman to beat them to sleep. But even though he felt bad, he couldn't focus on them... not now. He had to focus on getting to Joker. On getting to Catwoman. They made the wrong choice of following Joker and were going to have to deal with the consequences of that choice... just as he had to deal with the consequences for the choices he made.

  
Batman went throughout the building, attacking from behind. Above. Below. Sometimes he had to fight head on, punching and kicking and throwing their bodies. Other times it was easier and they didn't have to deal with much of a fight; just silently pressing on that nerve in their neck to pass them out. Most of the men wouldn't give away Joker's location, but one man began to beg and plea.

  
"Don't hurt me! Please! I'll tell you where to go!" he'd said, apparently having a change of heart. A weaker man, not meant to be under Joker's control. Batman allowed the man to give him directions to exactly where to go before he choked him out.

  
"Hey, wait, not so fast!" Joker yelled. "I'm not ready yet, you idiot! How could you betray me like that? After all I've done for you? Ooh, you're going to wish you hadn't done that... The rest of you! Fight harder! Don't just let him take you down like that! Put your back into it! Fight with your core!"

  
Batman continued on. He fought each man quickly and flawlessly as he made his way down the stairs, through the rooms, through the halls, through vents... and finally came upon the door that the man said Joker was behind. A very large door... Batman had to crawl through the vent beside it to get into the huge room.

  
Once inside, he saw there were at least twenty men. Some blew on party horns while loud dance music filled the room. They didn't charge after him... instead, they looked as if they were ready to celebrate someone's birthday. There were balloons and giant jack-in-the-boxes and a few very large television screens. Confetti fell from the ceiling. Batman looked around; Joker wasn't here. Neither was Catwoman. Obviously the man hadn't given him the directions to where Joker was located... but rather, gave him the directions to where Joker wanted him to be.

  
Batman stepped forward, planning to knock in the teeth of each and every one of those twenty men. He knew they'd become a problem later on if he didn't take care of them now. Some of them backed up while others got into a fighting stance...

  
But suddenly, the screens turned on, causing Batman to freeze. Joker was on most of them. Each TV showed him in a different angle. His feet. His teeth. His eyes. His entire face. His entire body. His hair. The flower on his coat. From the front, from the back. Every angle you could imagine.

  
The remaining two TVs showed Catwoman. One showed her from the front, one showed her from the back. Quick and to the point.

  
Joker couldn't stop laughing as Batman took in what he was seeing... This time, not only was Catwoman tied to a chair... but so was the Joker. And that wasn't all... there were a ridiculous amount of weapons and death traps surrounding him. His feet were in a bucket full of water, leading to an electric current. There was a crocodile in a cage beside him, and meat upon Joker's lap. There was a man pointing a gun at him, a man pointing a knife at him. A man wielding a flame-thrower and a man wielding what looked to be a freeze ray... something that belonged to Mr. Freeze? There was a noose around his neck, and who knew what else.

  
"Just in time! How do I look?" asked the Joker, his smile wide and proud. Batman bared his teeth as he ground them together, tightly.

  
"Ridiculous," Batman responded, angrily. Joked laughed.

  
"I thought you might say that. Anyhoo! As you can see, there are a few different ways that this can go. Heehee! If you look ahead, past the party-goers, you will see that there are 7 doors. Each door holds a certain... person... hmm-hmm!" Joker began. Batman looked at the doors... each one was labeled...

  
The first door read BANE OF YOUR EXISTENCE.

  
_Bane?_ thought Batman.

  
The second door read MURDERING GATOR.

  
_Killer croc..._

  
The third door read DOUBLE MUG.

  
_Two-Face._

  
The fourth door read BIRD MIDGET.

  
_Penguin..._

  
The fifth door read BURNING BUG.

  
_Fire-Fly._

  
The sixth door read MR. RIGID.

  
_Mr. Freeze._

 

And the seventh door read STRAWMAN.

  
_Scarecrow..._

  
_No... they can't all be here. Can they?_ Batman thought. He took a deep breath as he prepared for what might be a long, long night.

  
"It's true! They're all here! For you, Bats! Each person... or, penguin... or, crocodile... bug... icicle... field decoration... you get the idea, will be associated with one of these methods of death! There's a remote taped to each door. A remote with a single button. Press that button... it'll kill me, in one of the ways shown... and will release the cat. Don't press the button... and your feisty feline will get a nasty little taste of your betrayal. And at the end of all this... if I'm not dead... I'm going to kill her! Or, more likely, YOU will. Oh, I can't wait!" Joker explained, giggling madly. Batman imagined Joker would be clapping if his hands weren't chained behind his back.

  
"You don't have to do this, Joker," Batman began. "Stop this. Let her go. You don't want her... You want me."

  
"Hmm... alright. I'll let her go... haha! You fool! Do you really think it'd be that easy? That hurts, Bat-brain! I spend two weeks setting all of this up for you and you go and pretend that you don't even want to play!" Joker said.

  
"I know what you want," Batman responded, ignoring all that Joker said. "I'll give it to you, if you let her go." He was bluffing; he wasn't really entirely sure what it was Joker wanted. But he imagined, it'd be related to pain... Suffering... Murder... Maybe even sex, of the worst kind. Batman thought that if he did get Joker to give in, he would only knock him unconscious before the clown started naming off any of his desires. 

  
Joker hesitated, a brow raised. He looked to the left, then the right.

  
"Hmmmm..." he hummed, thinking, his smile fading.

  
"While that is a nice offer, Bats, I'm afraid I'll have to pass. THIS is what I want," he said after not too long. "She needs to be here to make the point. It's all a part of the game!" he exclaimed, his smile returning, wider than before.

  
_DAMN..._ Batman thought.

  
"Fine. I'll play your game. But listen. Joker. If it comes down to it... I'm going to let you die. This is your last chance. I'm going to save Catwoman," Batman said.

  
"Told you," Catwoman said.

  
"We'll see about that, now, won't we?" Joker said in response.

  
With that, Batman ran toward the group of men in the room. He kicked one in the face, kneed one in the gut. Punched and slammed, threw men at each other. He slammed their heads together, he swiped his leg across their own resulting in them falling to the floor. He threw his batarang at one when the man dared to shoot him, he used the bat claw to attach to one man and pull him back into his fist.

  
"Whoo hoo hoo! Bats! You're on a roll! Just a few more and you'll be able to start the game!" Joker cried.

  
_He loves this... he loves watching me beat his own men..._  thought Batman as he elbowed a man square in the nose.

  
"I hate to break it to you, _honey_ , but you're digging you're own grave," Catwoman said.

  
"Hah!" Joker laughed. "You really think that, don't you? How sweet! Keep telling yourself that, cat. Bats and I have been doing this for a very... very long time. You wouldn't understand."

  
"I UNDERSTAND that you're going to die, tonight, clown. Ugh... Finally," replied Catwoman.

  
"Oh, I doubt that, my dear. I truly doubt that...hmmhmmhaha... Batman won't kill me. I've begged him to... I've begged him to put me out of my misery! To save children! Babies, even! But he won't do it. It's about more than just his one rule... He needs me. And he knows he needs me. He loves me... more than he loves even you. And I'm going to prove that, tonight," Joker chuckled, darkly.

  
"You're even crazier than I thought. Hmm. I wonder what BATS and I will do after you're dead? Maybe go see a movie? Make love on top of your dead body?" Catwoman taunted.

  
"Oooh, I'm going to -- !! I... hmm... You know, it's funny! I can't tell whether that INFURIATES ME!! Or... EXCITES me! Haha!" Joker replied.

  
"Oh GOD..." Catwoman said, obvious disgust in her voice.

  
"Enough!" Batman yelled, only about 5 men remaining. Joker laughed hysterically.

  
"You're sick. Hurry up, Bat. I can't stand listening to this LUNATIC much longer," said Catwoman.

  
"I really wish I'd gagged you when I had the chance, hah! Women! Am I right, Bats?!" Joker exclaimed. Batman groaned in his throat, knocking out the last man. Once all were lying there, unconscious, Batman fixed his gloves and stretched his fingers. His knuckles were somewhat sore... but it'd only just begun.

  
"Impressive!" said Joker. "I'd clap if my hands weren't chained together! Now, go go go! To door number one!"

Batman did just that. 


	4. Bane of Your Existence

Batman walked over to the first door, reading the big, green letters spray painted onto it... BANE OF YOUR EXISTENCE. He took a breath as he ripped the tape off the remote on the door and took it into his hands. For a moment, he looked at the remote, pondering... before he put it in one of the pockets of his belt then opened the door and stepped into the dark room.

  
There were three small TVs; the only light in the room. One TV, on the left, showed Catwoman; sitting there, frustrated, in the chair. Then another TV, one over to the right, was showing Joker. And right beside that one, to its' right, was one showing Joker's feet in the bucket of water. Batman looked away from the TVs and into the middle of the big, empty room... and he saw none other than Bane, standing there silently. Eerily. Staring at Batman. Waiting. 9 and a half feet tall, and more muscular than ever. He was truly frightening to look at. Batman tensed his jaw, closing his hands into fists and glaring at Bane. Batman was fully aware of his power, fully aware of his intelligence. And he knew how badly Bane wanted to kill him... which made him wonder why Bane was playing this game at all. Joker's high-pitched voice echoing throughout the room caused Batman to momentarily look away from Bane and back at the TV on the left, into Joker's wide, green eyes.

  
"Bane here will be associated with this lovely little bucket of water! What can I say, after Arkham, I really needed to relax! You know, soak my feet! Haha!" Joker explained. Batman watched as Joker excitedly wiggled his toes underneath the water.

  
"You press the button, and it electrocutes me ... to death. But not only that! It also frees your pretty kitty, AND renders Bane unconscious... Oh! I should mention. If Bane knocks YOU out, that's an automatic game over, and Catwoman dies. So what are you waiting for? Do what you must!" Joker ended, dramatically.

  
"Press it, Bat!" yelled Catwoman.

 

Batman rested his gloved hand over the remote in his pocket.

  
_What do I do? Do I press the button? Do I kill Joker? It'd free Selina... she'd be safe. What if Bane does manage to knock me out? Automatic game over... Automatically kills Selina. All I have to do is press this button... and it's all over. This entire game, over..._

 

Batman had to stop his thought process as Bane was stepping closer ever so slowly.

  
"Why are you doing this, Bane? What do you get out of it, if you're not allowed to kill me?" Batman asked, stalling.

  
"Because. I am going to knock you out. Once Catwoman dies, you will be broken... and not just yours bones," responded Bane, punching his own palm as he began stomping toward Batman.

  
_No, I need more time to decide... I can't press the button. No. I won't let Bane take me down. I can't._

 

Batman threw one batarang at Bane's left leg and one batarang at his right. Neither did a thing, only caused Bane (and Joker) to laugh.

  
"Bat!" Catwoman cried, pain and fear in her voice as she realized that he decided not to press the button. Batman had to ignore it as Bane suddenly came running toward him, full speed. Batman ran as fast as he could, around the room, away from Bane. He wasn't sure what else he could do. Bane was not someone he could just go over to and punch in the face. Even if he did manage to get close enough to punch, kick, knee or elbow him, it wouldn't do much of anything.

  
_I have to rely on what's in my utility belt..._ thought the Bat as he reached for another batarang. Bane chased him, his weight causing the room to shake and Batman's heart to pound furiously. Just before Batman threw the batarang, instead at Bane's shoulder, Bane caught up to him and took him by the foot. Batman's breath caught in his throat as he struggled to get free from the large man's grasp. Unable to, he instead tried to punch and kick Bane but it did nothing as he dangled Batman for a moment before punching him in the gut. He punched him so hard that he went flying across the room and hit the wall.

  
"Aaggh!" Batman cried in pain, hearing Joker's laughter in the background. He felt that he'd broken a rib... but he was still conscious. And he couldn't stop until Bane wasn't. He reached again for a batrang, and this time, he swung it and it dug deep into Bane's shoulder. Blood spilled from the wound as Bane growled and grabbed for the batarang, ripped it out, and threw it on the floor. He shouted angrily and then again ran towards Batman, but Batman quickly rolled out of the way. Bane almost came in contact with the wall, but he stopped himself just before. That's when Batman got an idea.

  
_I can't knock him out on my own... but I could use his own power against him. If I can get him to hit that wall, head first, at the right speed... He might go down._

  
Batman threw another batarang, this one in Bane's other shoulder, then punched Bane in the face over and over again... more to anger him than anything, get his adrenaline pumping. Bane swiped his hand to the left, sending Batman to the wall for a second time. The wall crumbled and pieces hit the floor, just as he did.

  
_Still awake..._

  
Batman got up shakily and despite the fact that his vision was blurred and his legs weak, he ran yet again, but this time, he used the bat claw to attach to a pillar... and just when Bane came running for him, the behemoth tripped over the wire and went face first into the wall. His speed and weight caused him to go through it... and then he hit the floor. Batman caught his breath as he watched Bane, and he realized that both legs were still and he wasn't getting back up. He used his detective vision and saw his heart rate was declining... he knocked himself out, just as Batman had hoped he would.

  
Batman stood up, his heart pounding as he slowly recovered. He looked at the screen, at Catwoman who was safe... And then at Joker. He glared at Joker, hatred flowing through his veins... Joker looked back at him, but he didn't glare at the bat; instead, he smiled, from ear to ear... predictable. Batman took the remote out of his pocket. He thought to press the button... to release Catwoman... to end Joker. To stop this game and keep any other game from ever being played. But no... he couldn't. He wouldn't.

  
Batman thought to crush the remote, but he felt that were too much of a risk, so he instead placed it gently on the floor in front of him.

  
Joker's smile grew even wider and he laughed maniacally. At the same time... two men appeared beside Catwoman, both with something in their hands. Batman couldn't make out what they were... until they both started bringing them in contact with her. They were tasers... they were tasing her. She yelped and cried and Batman did the same.

  
"No! Stop!" he yelled. "Leave her alone! You're going to pay for this!" Batman exclaimed, looking angrily at Joker.

  
"The button's right there! Go on and press it! End it right now! Kill me! You and I both know I deserve it! There's no rehabilitating this crazy kook!" Joker said. Batman was breathing deeply as he glared at Joker, unblinking. Not looking away. Joker looked back, his grin big and toothy. Batman looked down at the remote... _It would be so easy to end it..._ and then he picked it up.

  
"Ooh, is he going to press it?" Joker asked sarcastically, hardly worried despite the fact that Batman literally had his life in his hands. Batman could hear Catwoman getting tased, again and again... the sound of her pained voice ringing through his ears.

  
"Press it, Bat! Now!" Catwoman cried in between the tasing.

  
"Hey, uh, boss... what if he actually presses it?" one of Joker's men asked.

  
"Shut up! He's trying to think, here," Joker responded, watching Batman as he stared at that big, red button.

  
_I can't let her die... I made it through Bane... but what about Killer Croc? What about all the others? Her life is in my hands... this button... pressing this button ensures her safety._

  
_This game isn't what I thought it'd be... I wouldn't actually have to kill Joker. I'd just press a button, and the traps he set up... they'd do it for me. It wouldn't be my fault. It's different than strangling or beating the life out of him... this is just a button. A button for a trap that Joker made... not me. And this is Selina... Selina's life is at stake!_

  
_I have to press it. I have no other choice. I can't risk Selina dying... I have to end Joker..._

  
_"You need me, bats...!"_ Batman suddenly heard the Joker in his ear. A conversation they had some months ago... both were on the top of a building, under the moonlight, after a very long night of brutal fighting. They were breathless and sweaty and blood-soaked. Pain from head to toe. Batman had come so close to killing him that night; he'd punched him over and over and over in the face, til it looked to be nothing but a bloody mess. He'd shoved Joker against the floor and held him down with his arm forcefully, about ready to strangle him to death, as he always fantasized doing. But Joker had tried to speak in between gurgling laughs and coughing as he choked on his own blood.

  
_"You... khaack! You can't kill me, haha!! ...I... give you purpose! Hah...hahh... What would you do... without me? Sure...sss... life would be easy... But is that ... is that what you really want? Is it what you want, Bats? Kssh, grrk... hah! You... you need me! I... complete you. Just as... you complete me...!"_

  
Batman remembered staring deep into those green eyes, standing out brightly against the red of the blood dripping down his face. Watching those usually tiny pupils. Taking notice of how large they were in that moment.

  
...There was _love_ in those eyes.

  
Joker... he was a _man_. An _insane_ man, but a man none the less.

  
A man capable of redemption. A man... capable of _love_.

  
One that loved _him_ , even after having experienced and witnessed all of the darkness within...

  
Batman had instead shouted in Joker's face and knocked him unconscious before bringing him back to Arkham Asylum.

  
_What we have, is... is it more than I want to believe it is? Could I really kill him?_ thought the Batman.

  
Batman bowed his head in defeat... and slowly placed the remote back on the floor.

  
"Room two. Killer croc. Same idea?" Batman asked, his voice deep. Low. Monotonous. More so than usual... He wouldn't raise his head.

  
"Oh, Batsy! I knew you wouldn't press it. Heehee! Take that, kitty cat! Joker, one! Catwoman, zero!" said Joker, excitedly. "Yep, pretty much the same idea... Except this one's half crocodile! Can you imagine?!"

  
Finally they stopped tasing Catwoman... Her lips parted as she took in breath after breath. Her own green eyes looked at Batman, with confusion and pain. 

  
But Batman wouldn't look at her... his shame was far too great in that moment. He instead turned around and left the room as two of Joker's men went over to the bucket and moved it out from under Joker's feet.

 


	5. No Laughing Matter

Batman entered room two, with the new remote in hand... this time, when he entered, the screens showed Catwoman on one side... and on the other side, Joker, the slab of meat on his lap, and the crocodile in the cage beside him. It whipped it's head against the side of the cage, creating a loud clanking noise. Joker excitedly wiggled in his seat.

  
_If I don't press it... and I knock out Croc... What is going to be done to Selina?_ thought Batman.

  
_The last theme was electricity... so she was tased. This theme is... a crocodile. I don't want to imagine what they'll do to her if I let Joker live, this time..._

  
"Maybe putting this slab of meat on my lap wasn't the best idea... Shoulda put it on my head, ended things nice and quickly! Here's to hoping that croc won't, uh... latch onto the wrong piece of meat. If ya know what I mean! Haha!" Joker laughed.

  
"Here's to hoping it will," replied Selina.

  
"Blah blah blah blah blah! You're not funny!" Joker responded.

  
"Bat... please. I know this is hard for you. But you have to press that button. There's no other choice..." Catwoman said. Her soft voice made Batman's predicament all the more difficult. He wanted nothing more than to be able to press that button. To save her...

  
"She's right, you know!" Joker chipped in.

  
_It might not be my fault..._ thought Batman.

  
_But the end result is the same... he dies... Eaten alive, by that crocodile... The crunch of his bones, I can almost hear it now..._

  
_I assume if I press this button, it'll unlock the door to the cage..._

  
_But if I don't kill him... SHE dies... No more kisses... Never again able to look into those beautiful eyes..._

  
"Cmon, Bruce... one last kiss before you go," Batman remembered she said, the last night they'd seen each other. They'd made love on top of a rooftop, under the moon. He remembered a smile making it's way onto her face, her green eyes lighting up, as he leaned forward and they kissed once more.

  
"I'll see you soon," he'd said before disappearing into the night.

  
How he wished now that he'd never had to leave the building. Leave her.

  
_Press it, Bruce... for her. Do it for her..._

  
Each time Batman came close to pressing it, all he could hear was that voice... the voice of the devil. The voice of Joker. The jester, his jester, whispering in his ear... as if he were living there, in his head. Always there... to remind him of their bond. Remind him of the sick and twisted love that Joker had for him. _"I'm a part of you, and you're a part of me... What would we do without each other? I couldn't bare to lose you! I'd kill myself right then and there!"_

 _"Where ever you go, I'll follow, just as I always have. We'll be together forever, Batman... And that's no laughing matter!"_ said the clown.

  
"Just hurry up and press it!" Joker said. "I'm getting bored. The afterlife has got to be more entertaining than this!"

  
_He's testing me... he's pushing me as far as he can push me... He thinks... the more he pushes... and the less I do about it... the more I care for him. That's what this is all about... he wants to prove that I care about him. More than her. More than anyone..._

  
Killer Croc. About the size and strength of Bane, faster, but not as intelligent. He heard the fear in Selina's voice as she spoke to him.

  
"Bat, please... He's MAKING you choose. It's either me, or him," she'd said.

  
"In case I didn't make that clear enough for you!" Joker added, sarcastically.

  
Batman had to block the two out as he focused on Killer Croc.

  
"He said not to kill..." said the reptilian man, drool dripping out his mouth and hitting the cold floor beneath them. "But a bite will do!" continued the crocodile in a deep, guttural voice.

  
He then came charging for Batman. Batman quickly took the explosive gun out of his pocket, sprayed the floor, rolled off in the other direction and detonated it. Killer Croc couldn't stop himself from running right into the explosion. He was thrown up and then come slamming down hard on the floor; hitting his head in the process. His head hit the cement so hard and so loudly that Batman momentarily panicked, worried that he'd killed him. He went over to the human-like crocodile and pressed his fingers against his neck... still alive. But unconscious.

  
Batman hesitated, unwilling to look back up at the television screens. Especially Catwoman's... but he had to. A man came over to her, with something in his arms. It was a crocodile... but a young one. Not enough to kill, but enough to cause some serious damage.

  
"You made your point, Joker," Batman began. He had to try something. Anything. "I won't see her anymore. Just... please," Batman said, despondently; hating the fact that he had to beg his nemesis.

  
"I already told ya, bats! Nobody's leaving this place until one of us is dead," Joker responded.

  
"Bat, press the button! Don't let him do this!" Catwoman cried.

"Yeah, Batsy, don't let me do this!" added Joker.

But Batman was immobile as the man brought the small crocodile closer to her leg. It did nothing at first so the man pushed it harder and harder against her leg and once she struggled against it's mouth, it became agitated and latched onto her shin through the black leather of her suit. She screamed and cried and begged Batman to press the button, as the small reptile shook it's head back and forth, it's tiny razor sharp teeth digging into her calf and taking a small chunk of her flesh into it's mouth.

  
"Nnoooo!" Batman growled, angrily, unable to contain it any longer. He clenched his teeth so hard he could practically hear them crack. Saliva dripped from his mouth as he whipped his head, looking at Joker.

  
"I'm going to find you! And when I do, you're going to wish you were dead!!!" Batman threatened.

  
"Hahaha! Oh no! I'm so scared! What are you going to do? BEAT ME? Please do! Haha! Hoh, you really are funny... I've got the giggles! ...Okay, okay, look, how about this..." Joker began.

  
_An alternative?_ Batman wondered.

  
_No... A trick._

  
"You have three seconds to make it into the next room, or one of my men shoots her between the eyes," said Joker. "3..." he began counting down, causing Batman to quickly run out of the second room and into the third.

  
Joker laughed hysterically. Batman watched as the crocodile in the cage beside Joker was shot in the head and the piece of meat was removed from the clown's lap.

 

"Well that was fast! Haha! Hoo ha! You'd think I just threatened to KILL somebody!" Joker teased. "By the way, Carl, I felt that, don't think it slipped by me, you cheeky little devil," Joker said to the man who removed the slab of meat from his lap.

  
Batman, relieved that Joker hadn't had Catwoman killed, pushed the door back open, and retrieved the remote that had been taped to the front of it. He then turned back towards the screens. The time it showed Catwoman, who was paler than before. Joker... and the man pointing the gun at him.

 

Two-Face stood in the middle of the room... he had a gun in one hand and a coin in the other. He flipped it over and over.

  
_Guns... that's the theme..._ thought Batman.

  
"Bat, listen..." Catwoman began, causing Batman to look away from Two-Face. Her eyes were heavily lidded and she seemed slightly disoriented. "If it makes you feel any better... You're not actually killing him. This isn't in cold blood... This was all his idea. All you're doing... is pressing a button. Look at it as a... a button that releases me. Not a button that kills him..." she said.

  
Batman hesitated before he spoke, turning toward the screen showing Joker.

  
"If I press this button. How do I know he's going to shoot you and not her? How do I know that the gun is even loaded?" Batman asked.

  
"Oh, come on, Bats! Don't insult me! You know I always play fair!" Joker exclaimed.

  
Batman did nothing but glare at the green-haired psycopath.

  
"The gun is fully loaded... Show him that I mean business!" Joker said to the man. The henchman walked over to the camera and showed Batman the bullets in the chamber. Joker then continued. "And I have given you strict orders to do what, Rob?" Joker asked the man, waiting.

  
"To, uh... to shoot ya six times, Joker sir. Empty the chamber in ya," Rob responded, quickly.

  
"Where?" Joker asked. He looked at Batman, and for the first time that night, he was frowning.

  
"All of 'em, in your heart," Rob replied.

  
"Exactly! See?" Joker said, his smile returning. "I mean, what do you think this is, some kind of game?! I take this very, very seriously... hahaha! Humm..."

  
Despite Joker's teasing toward the end, Batman noticed the sudden seriousness in Joker's voice and the way his expressions changed. He had been able to pinpoint the small hints of truth; especially in his eyes. Joker was angry that Batman didn't believe him and was angry that Batman was doubting the genuineness of the game. Joker was hurt.

  
_All of them in the heart..._ Batman thought. A part of him knew why Joker chose the heart of all places... But another part of him denied it full-force... _He's insane._

Batman turned his attention back towards Two-Face.

  
_This theme is guns... Selina... She'll be shot. Where she'll be shot, I don't know... But... He won't kill her. That much I do know. The only way she'll die, now, is if somehow Two-Face manages to render me unconscious... I won't let him have that chance._

 

"Good heads, I shoot your foot... Bad heads? Your hand," Two-Face said.

  
_I can't lose the function of my hand or foot... I need both to fight properly... to be the best I can be... I can't risk losing..._

  
Batman was on high alert as he watched Two-Face flip the coin, higher this time, and caught it on his arm. He pulled back his hand and looked...

  
"Bad heads," he said, and immediately shot at Batman's hand. Batman quickly moved it, then took his batclaw and shot it towards Two-Face, pulling the gun out of his hand. He then shot his batclaw again, at Two-Face's belt, pulling him forward, and knocking him out in a single punch to the face.

  
"Hah! That was easier than expected!" Joker said, amusement in his voice. Batman watched as the man aiming the gun at Joker walked away... then, with dread, he saw that same man walked over to Catwoman.

  
_They're in the same room..._ thought Batman as he watched the man point the gun at her foot.

  
"To press... or not to press? That is the big question! Does he shoot her in the foot? Or does he shoot me in the heart?" Joker asked. Batman held the remote in his hand...

 

 The same questions replayed in his mind over and over. Press the button? Kill the Joker? Save Selina?

  
Always met with memories... the voice of the Joker himself... _" I'm the yin to your yang..."_ Images of the tall and scrawny man, staring him deep in the eye, while running his fingers along the bat symbol on his chest.

  
_I'm getting further..._ thought Batman. _I'm almost at the end. Selina will make it... she's strong. She can handle it. He's not going to kill her. Not yet. I have time._

  
_She will never forgive me... and once this is over... I will lose her. It's best that I do. As long as Joker lives... anyone I love is in danger. It's best that I distance myself... to save them._

  
Batman placed the remote on the floor.

  
"No!" Selina cried, and immediately the man shot her in the foot. Batman heard her scream, saw the blood spill from the wound on her foot. That blood, so much like his mother's. His father's. He wanted to scream with her, to beg Joker to stop, but he knew it wouldn't help.

  
"Ooh, that had to hurt! I wonder how much more she can take, don't you?" Joker asked, feigning curiosity. Pushing, pushing, pushing.

  
Batman said nothing, only left the room and went into the next.

  
This one held Penguin... the over-weight, stinking man held a knife in his right hand. This time, if Batman pressed the button, Joker would be stabbed to death by one of his men.

  
Batman knew it was coming... and his heart felt as if it shattered when it did...

  
"Bat..." Catwoman began, speech still slurred. She was white as a ghost and looked ready to pass out. "Are you... are you really going to let... him do this? Are you... willing to risk my life?"

  
She sounded so afraid, so hurt. Batman had never seen her like this before. He had to be strong for her. He had to be confident.

  
"I won't let him kill you, Cat. I promise," Batman said. Joker laughed loudly.

  
He again questioned it... should he press the button?

  
Penguin came closer to Batman.

  
"An' he still 'asn't pressed the bloody button! Hahaha! What kind of a man... sits back an' watches his lady... litchrally get murdered in front of 'im?" Penguin questioned, but his question wasn't sincere. It was meant to upset Batman and it worked. Batman watched as a smile made it's way onto the bird-like man's face. He wondered why Penguin was doing this. He and Penguin both knew that Batman was going to knock him out effortlessly. So why would Penguin sign up for this? Why would he allow such a thing? Did Penguin originally think Batman was going to kill Joker before he got the chance to knock him out? Batman wouldn't try and convince Penguin to change his mind about being a part of this game because he knew if the game was altered in any way that Joker might do something crazy... but Batman was curious at the least. He assumed it was related to money; it was how Joker usually got people to follow him and do the nonsensical things he asked for.

  
As Batman was wondering, he suddenly heard a gasp and then a sigh come from the TV on the left.

  
Penguin sliced at Batman, the knife digging into his forearm; normally he'd have stopped Penguin before he were even ten feet near him. But Penguin had the advantage only because Batman was distracted by Selina as she suddenly passed out. Joker had one of his men wake her back up. When she did come back, she looked around, fear in her eyes as she remembered where she was. She then growled in her throat, brows lowering angrily, as she struggled to escape... but nothing could be done.

  
He wanted to kill Joker... his mind said it over and over... press it, kill him... kill him... kill him... save her!

  
But just as he didn't press any of those buttons in the previous rooms... he didn't press it now.

  
_" We were made for each other, Bats!"_

  
_Maybe we were..._ thought Batman. He was disgusted with himself. _I'm no better than you are. In fact, I might be worse. You do the things you do because you're insane... what's my excuse for keeping a monster like you alive? For risking her life for yours?_

  
Batman was so angry with himself and with Joker, he used his full force to knock out Penguin in one blow, a loud crunching noise being heard as he did.

  
"Ooh! Bloody hell! That's gotta hurt, now, doesn't it?!" Joker cried, mocking Penguin's accent. He laughed before he continued in his own voice. "I hope the broken nose is worth the $10,000! Hehaha!" said Joker, confirming that it was indeed money related.

  
Batman watched as a man walked over to Selina, and brought a knife to her face...

  
"No!" Batman exclaimed, unable not to.

  
He dug the sharp tip into the corner of her lip... and made a slice. Not too deep... but deep enough to leave a nasty scar. Deep enough to cause pain. He then made the same mark on the other side... giving her a bloody smile. Hideous and traumatizing...

  
Batman watched Selina as she glared at the man who cut her. Batman then looked at Joker, who was looking to the left, over at Selina, and was smiling widely.

  
"Much better!" he said. "Look at her smile for you, bats!"

  
"Don't push me, Joker!" Batman yelled, pointing at Joker on the screen.

  
"Oo hoo hoo! He's angry! I love it! Gimme more!" Joker exclaimed.

  
Batman tried to hold his tongue; he knew the more he reacted, the more it would encourage Joker. He had to be quiet... he had to act as if none of this was bothering him.

  
He silently made it to the next room, remote in hand. Fire Fly... he aimed at Batman with a flame thrower, trying to burn him as he flew around the room, but Batman used the batarang to knock him to the floor. Once he landed, painfully, Batman went over to him and head butt him hard enough to knock him out cold. The man beside Joker, wielding the flame thrower, stepped back. While another man stepped over to Catwoman, lit a cigar, and burned her arm with the tip of it.

  
Batman, knowing Freeze was in the next room, took the flame thrower out of Fire Fly's hands and left the room. He took the remote off the door and put it in his belt pocket, knowing he wasn't going to press that button. It was easy to take down Mr. Freeze, as he'd heated him up to the point that he could hardly breathe, and passed out.

  
"... Bruce..." Selina said, her voice cracking. She was becoming delusional, what with the loss of blood and the pain and the torment. Batman held his breath, feeling as if his heart had just stopped.

  
_NO! Selina, no... My name... He knows... Joker knows... If he makes it out of this... Alfred --_

  
"Bruise?!" Joker said, laughing. "My dear... ha! You've got a lot more than a bruise!"

  
Batman looked up at Joker; was he pretending not to have heard correctly? Was it a joke? Was he denying that he'd heard it, for his own sake? Or did he truly misunderstand what it was she said? He searched for the answer in Joker's cold, green eyes... but he was interrupted, as Catwoman began to scream yet again.

  
This time, her arms were rubbed with dry ice. Batman couldn't bare to watch.

 


End file.
